Alderaan - Love and Intrigue

Delmi stood leaning on the railing looking out the window of the cruise ship with her minders a short distance away.

She tapped her foot impatiently… staring out the window but not looking at anything in particular.

She hated spotting her enemies any time and space… and yet here she was on this boat.

It was with a concerned frown that Niall approached his friend. If he noticed the minders, he didn't say anything.

Stopping a few steps away, he cleared his throat, alerting Delmi if she hadn't already become aware of him. She probably had. It was polite anyway.

"Major." He said, smiling gently. "You look as though you've had a difficult day or two." His grey eyes were sympathetic; he knew from Layne just how difficult her yesterday had been, after all.

Delmi looked towards him out of the side of her eye for a moment before turning back to the outside.

“Difficult days are my daily fare Major Captain.” She patted the railing next to her hand, offering him space beside her.

Still smiling, Niall took the spot. For a few moments, he looked out the window with her in companionable silence.

"I spoke with Layne yesterday." He finally said, speaking softly. "She told me what happened, in her way." He looked at Delmi. "You found her?" The 'her' was obviously not Layne.

“Yup… Didn’t disappoint. Evil spy through and through.” She said with a nod.

Slowly, Niall nodded. "Are you alright?" He asked. After a moment, he grimaced. "I'm not... I'd ask that question of anyone in my command who faced less difficult circumstances, you know."

“I know you’re coming from a good place Niall. Don’t worry. I’m not that easy to piss off.” She replied.

“But I’m good. I’m pissed things didn’t go as well as I would have liked… and that she’s still walking around out there. But I did what I thought was best. No regrets. The fact that they had to take swipes at me and Layne says we did something right.”

She looked over to him, “Sorry you got dragged into the lies they spewed out… probably wasn’t a fun morning for you.”

"Hah." Niall smiled wryly. "Like you say, it means we must be doing something right. And while it does cause a few problems, it didn't cause any with my wife. But thank you." He looked at her, smile warming.

The smile faded. "So it sounds as though you have some idea what we're up against." He glanced briefly back at her escort. "I'd ask your next move, but perhaps later. Clearly we need to be careful what we say, and where we say it."

She nodded, “They were successful in tying a metal ball to my ankle… Makes it harder for me to move. But I don’t need to move everything… If there’s one thing about Layne, she’s not the best at keeping secrets… Which at a time like this might actually be helpful.”

Niall laughed. "If there's anyone who can deal with whatever they can throw at her, it's Layne. I have faith in her ability to attract as much attention, and probably cause as much distraction, as a mad Kath hound."

He looked at Delmi. "Do you know how long you have to deal with this metal ball?"

“Until the ADF doesn’t think I’m a terrorist anymore.” Delmi replied.

Niall frowned. "Oh." He glanced back at the two guards again, frowning.

Then back to Delmi. "The footage is fairly obviously fake. I should know." Another wry smile. "Do you have anyone investigating your side of the story?"

“Just an ADF agent. I’ve given her my references and I assume they’ll be making their investigation… Hopefully they come to their senses sooner rather than later.” She replied as her foot started gently tapping on the floor again subconsciously.

Niall frowned. "Let me see if I can put some of my people on it. I'd rather have you not nailed down sooner rather than later."

He glanced down at her tapping foot, then out the window. "It's rather nerve-wracking, isn't it? I very much feel as though we're operating under a deadline. And here we are, on a space boat."

“Yup… Not sure any of it makes any sense. But I take it things like this are rather important here on Alderaan?” She replied, leaving the statement open-ended so as to draw out an answer from the master of Alderaanian knowledge.

Niall smiled. "It's a very important Festival, yes. We even had it last year, when the Sith were on the planet. In a much abbreviated form, of course, but still. Enough for my my marriage."

He sighed. "This year is especially important, with the issue of succession. That, I expect, sets our timetable. Once the Queen names her successor, a number of moves will be made by a number of players. Hopefully good ones."

She nodded, “I hope we get that far…”

She let out a sigh, “I don’t plan on sticking around if it means shooting at Organa and Ulgo folks for the defense of House Thul. So I hope you politician-types have that all covered in the meantime…”

Niall grimaced. "I very much hope it doesn't come to that. Organa doesn't want Sith on Alderaan, but I think your earlier supposition was very much correct; Thul is not supported by the Empire. Organa's priority is maintaining the peace, not destroying Thul."

She nodded, “There are no angels running these houses. I hope House Thul… or Ulgo… don’t force anybody’s hand because they’re scared. It’s not just shadowy bad guys that could tip this thing in the wrong way. They didn’t create the tension that’s here… they’re just exploiting it and making it worse.”

She shrugged, “But you’ll handle that stuff. You’re good at that. Giving speeches. Getting people on the same page.”